It is known that those bodywork parts which are painted off the main vehicle assembly line must be painted in compliance with very precise criteria for color and surface state so that such parts have the same appearance as the remainder of the bodywork which is painted as a body.
It is also known that the settings of a painting line can drift as a function of various factors, such as, for example: humidity, ambient temperature, and atmospheric pressure; and that it is essential to monitor parts as they leave the painting line, at least for quality control purposes, and possibly also for making consequential adjustments to the settings of the line.
For this purpose, it is known to use an optical measuring apparatus such as that sold under the reference CARFLASH by the US supplier X-RITE.
That apparatus is disposed at the end of the painting line on a “stop-and-go” station, i.e. a station at which parts being inspected make a pause during which the measurement is performed, after which they continue with their progress along the line.
Until now, stations for inspecting the painting of motor vehicle parts have always been of the stop-and-go type, since the measuring apparatus is known to be highly sensitive to vibration, and any displacement of the parts along the line inevitably leads to considerable amounts of vibration in the parts.
Indeed, that is the method of using the measuring apparatus that is recommended by its manufacturer.